Aruna Rao

Aruna Rao is a technology strategist with over 35 years of leadership experience in driving technology transformation across the Banking and Financial Services industry. She advises organizations on technology strategy, helping leadership teams harness emerging technologies to accelerate business growth, strengthen resilience, and create competitive advantage.

Having served as Chief Technology Officer at Kotak Mahindra Bank and its group companies, Aruna has led enterprise-wide technology strategy, digital transformation, cybersecurity, cloud adoption, and AI for technology modernization. Her career also includes 15 years in global leadership roles at Citigroup, where she built and scaled technology capabilities for corporate banking.

As an Independent Director on the boards of financial services organizations, Aruna brings a unique combination of technology expertise, business acumen, governance experience, and regulatory understanding. Her insights help boards navigate digital disruption, technology risk, cybersecurity, AI governance, and innovation-led growth.

A passionate advocate for diversity in technology leadership, Aruna mentors aspiring women leaders through We-ACE, helping build the next generation of technology professionals.